The Cold War A Historical Perspective 1945 1990

The Cold War - A Historical Perspective (1945 -1990) BY Prof. Amit Bhalla Department of Political Science Govt. P. G College Rajouri

The Cold War Defined A continuing state of tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union A Clash of two contrasting ideologies. Capitalism and Communism

Development of the Cold War U. S. saw Soviet Union as threat to their way of life USSR thought they had won WWII Lost most lives Wanted to gain land as prize Saw U. S. as threat

Development of the Cold War �Iron Curtain-figure of speech by Churchill describing line separating free and communist Europe �“From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and, in many cases, increasing measure of control from Moscow. “

Cold War Doctrines �Truman Doctrine-promised aid to countries resisting communism �Communist pressured Greece and Turkey �Containment- philosophy of limiting spread of communism �Marshall Plan- aid to strengthen democratic governments

Division of Germany Divided into four zones West Germany free East Germany communist controlled Berlin Airlift Communists forced blockade of West Berlin U. S. , Britain flew in food almost a year.

Cold War Alliances NATO-North Atlantic Treaty Organization Free nations pledged support to each other if attacked by communism SEATO-Southeast Asia Treaty Organization Stop the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, following Korean Warsaw Pact Included Soviet Union and it’s seven satellite nations

Cold War Heats Up 1940’s-50’s Hungarian and Czechoslovakian anti-communist revolts forcefully repressed by USSR Beginning of Atomic Age 1949 Soviet Detonation of Nuclear Bomb U. S. begins work on hydrogen bomb Next 50 years arms race between two

Cold War Heats Up Space Race Competition for space 1957 Soviet’s launch Sputnik U. S. starts NASA Use of Spy satellite equipment 1958 - U. S. sent Explorer 1969 - Man lands on Moon

Fall of the Berlin Wall, 1990 �Triggered by flood of refugees flowing east to west through Hungary �Wall came down Nov. 1990; Germany began reunification process

Collapse of the Soviet Union �Stalin’s successors �Nikita Kruschev 1956 -1964 – hard line commie �Leonid Brezhnev 1964 -1982 � Practiced a policy of détente ( lessening of tensions) with the U. S. � Characterized by � Arms control talks � Cultural exchanges � Trade agreements

The Fall of the Soviet Union Causes 1. Leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev 2. Glasnostopenness to democracy 3. Perestroikareshaping of economy 4. Economic movements 5. Freedom Movements Effects 1. Formation of Commonwealth of Independent States Fall of Soviet Union 2. Loss of role as superpower 3. End of Cold War 4. Economic Hardship 5. Minority Revolts and ethnic conflicts

Break-up of Soviet Union, 1991 � 1989 - Poland breaks away from Soviet Union �Solidarity- movement that called for economic and political change led by Lech Walesa �Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania left USSR 1991 �USSR dissolved Dec. 1991 �Commonwealth of Independent States, led by Russia under Boris Yeltsin �Economic, religious, and crime problems

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